With the stand down of nuclear power after the catastrophic Fukushima Crisis in 2011, Japan found itself facing a critical energy dilemma. Until that time, 30% of Japan’s energy generation came from nuclear power plants. Japan was forced to increase its use of fossil fuels to fill the gap - a costly effort which pushed the country’s current accounts into deficit and has made it difficult for Japan to keep its commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Unable to continue on with either nuclear power or fossil fuels as a main source of energy, what is there left for Japan turn to?

Keynote speaker, Professor Daisuke Kitazawa, will talk about the generating energy from the ocean -- wind, tides, and other alternatives with a focus on his work done in the Tohoku area.

In addition, the coasts of Oregon and Washington State provide the largest potential for ocean wave generated energy in the lower U.S., and Puget Sound in particular has enormous potential for producing hundreds of megawatts of energy through tidal power.

At our Clean Energy event we will dive into both the science and business of harnessing geothermal energy and ocean energy as a clean, sustainable power source for Japan.

Keynote Speaker

Dr. Daisuke Kitazawa

Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical and Biofunctional Systems, Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo

Panelists

Mr.Kenji Ushimaru

President, Infra Innovations and JETRO Senior Advisor

Mr. Perry England

Vice President of Building Performance, MacDonald-Miller Facility Solutions